A/N: I think you already know i don't own these characters! And, if someone already did a story similar to this one, it wasn't my intention to copy, i just happened to have this idea, and i don't know if some other person came up with it...so, well, now that everything is clear, here's the story:

"Beadle, Beadle"

Oh no…i have to hide somewhere! Johanna was in Mister Todd's barber shop. Anthony had left her there, he told her that mister Todd was a good friend, and he agreed to help them elope. She didn't know him yet, but she hoped she could meet him before taking a ride to a faraway place.

But she trusted no one, so she didn't want to be seen by some random woman that came in the shop looking for the beadle…speaking of which. Where was the beadle?

"No good hiding, I saw you"

This will do. She went inside a big wooden box, she had to squeeze a bit, but she could fit in.

"Are you in there still beadle? Beadle…"

Johanna heard the door opening. She couldn't help feeling curious about the strange woman's voice, it sounded somehow familiar. So she opened the box a tiny bit, just to take a peek at her.

The beggar woman from the streets? What is she doing here?

She saw how the woman wandered through the room. She came to a piece of rotten wood, which had once been a baby's cradle. She took the dirty rag doll from inside it, and pretended to be real.

The woman was singing to the doll, while she looked around the small room. She must be crazy… She started going round in circles, accelerating the lullaby, until someone else came in the room.

He was a tall, strong man, but somehow he looked tired. The bags under his eyes are enormous…does he even sleep? And who is he anyway?

"Who are you?" He said, in a deep voice. "What are you doing here?"

He must be Mister Todd.

"It's the stink of evil from below sir, from Her!" The woman sounded very nervous. Her? Anthony mentioned a Miss Lovett…but he told me she was a good, caring woman. What would a beggar have against her?

"She's the devil's wife sir, she had no pity in her heart" She's almost crying…no, she can't be speaking about Miss Lovett then. Johanna left her thoughts apart to look at them again. The woman was lifting her head up, to look at Mister Todd.

"Don't I know you, mister?"

They were looking at each other, mister Todd was trying to see if he recognised her.

But they were interrupted by a third person.

"Mister Todd?" From the distance, Johanna could hear judge Turpin's voice.

Oh no, he's coming to get me! She looked at them again. Why isn't he doing anything?

Sweeney widened his eyes.

"Lucy?" it came out as a whisper, but she was so close to him that she could hear.

"Benjamin…is it really you?" they smiled at each other.

"Mister Todd!" The judge was approaching. Sweeney turned to his wife.

"Listen, he's after our daughter, there's no time for explanations, and you must hide" He thought for a moment.

"Sit here, you will fall to the place where Miss Lovett cooks her pies…I will come down as soon as I finish him off" they held hands for less than a second, while the woman, Lucy, sat down on the barber's chair.

"Wait for me" was the last thing he said before pulling her down.

Perfect timing, as judge Turpin had just entered the barber shop. But Johanna wasn't paying attention to that anymore, she was thinking about what Mister Todd had said before.

"He's after our daughter"